1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to swimming pool accessories and, more particularly, to self-adhering swimming pool borders for use with swimming pools and the like.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Residential swimming pools, both above-ground and in-ground, are often lined with a flexible plastic liner made of plasticized polyvinyl chloride, which makes the vessel watertight. These vinyl-lined pools may or may not feature a design printed onto the liner of the pool. The majority of above-ground pool liners are a solid color with no printed designs. Printed border designs help to camouflage dirt and scum that commonly occur at the water line of a pool, and provides an overall aesthetically pleasing appearance to the pool.
Printed liners border are generally printed in a rotogravure process at the time the pool liner is being fabricated. This printing process requires a printing plate, which is expensive to prepare, and expensive drying ovens.
Printed liner borders become discolored due to the ultra violet rays of the sun and chemicals present in the water long before the useful watertight life of the pool liner has expired. Thus, it is quite common for the pool owner to want to replace the border after the pool liner is in place. In addition, pool liners often become punctured or torn and are commonly xe2x80x9cpatchedxe2x80x9d with a piece of flexible polyvinyl chloride, like that of the existing pool liner, and adhered with an underwater adhesive such as methyl ethel ketone. These patches are often not a match to the liner color and design of the existing pool liner. They also often turn yellow and discolor over time as the glue or adhesive used to bond the patch to the pool liner ages. These unsightly patches are quite common in pool liners and, although they are functional in preventing water loss at the site, they are aesthetically unpleasing and detract from the overall appearance of the pool. The purpose of these patch kits is more functional in providing a watertight seal than aesthetic appearance. Although they may be able to be removed at a later date, they are more likely intended for permanent installation and may alter the existing pool liner on applying or removing.
One known apparatus for providing a xe2x80x9cnewxe2x80x9d pool liner border for a swimming pool having a vinyl liner is illustrated in FIG. 1. The apparatus shown in FIG. 1 is a tile support device 10 which is configured for attachment to a top edge of an in-ground swimming pool wall (not shown) and overhangs the pool liner. The tile support device 10 has a C-shaped cross section which defines a C-shaped recess. A plurality of tiles 12 is received in the C-shaped recess. The tiles 12 are typically ceramic tiles and are held in a registered relationship by the tile support device 10 without the need for adhesives or mortar.
The tile support device 10 shown in FIG. 1 has several disadvantages. First, it is difficult to remove the tiles 12 from the device 10, making cleaning and maintenance of the tiles 12 cumbersome. In addition, it is difficult and costly to install and requires the purchase of ceramic tiles. The tile can freeze and crack if it is not porcelain tile, and broken pieces of ceramic are a hazard to the pool liner and swimmers in the pool. In many cases the addition of the tile holder and the ceramic tile itself would be similar in cost to the purchase of a new liner and therefore cost prohibitive. In order for the tile holder and ceramic tile to be installed it is suggested that the pool be entirely drained so the installer can work from within the pool. This again adds to the expense and time required.
Outside the pool industry, a removable tile display device is known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,916,102 to Peyton. The removable tile disclosed by this reference includes a decorative tile, a holder for the tile, and a releasable adhesive for removably securing the back surface of the tile to the holder. The holder includes a cavity in which the decorative tile is positioned. Decorative tiles of various designs may be substituted within the holder as desired. The tile and holder combination may be permanently affixed to a wall or other planar surface.
Removable signs, wall decorations, decorative borders, and decals are also generally known for applications outside of the pool industry, such as in home decorations. Such removable signs, wall decorations, decorative borders and decals are applied with various applications including repositionable adhesive products such as repositionable note and paper products, repositionable tape and tape flags, easel sheets, repositionable glue stick and the like, but may also include other non-repositionable industrial, commercial, and medical adhesive products. Known repositionable adhesives include Scotchcal(copyright) brand Plus numbers 3650-10 and 3470; Scotchcal(copyright) brand numbers 3650, 3680, 7725 and 7755; Controltac(copyright) brand Plus numbers 180-10, 181-10 and 160-30; and Controltac(copyright) brand number 180-10 films all made by the 3M Company, Inc. St. Paul, Minn. Another repositionable adhesive is xe2x80x9cMelinexxe2x80x9d film, which refers to MELINEX(copyright) brand film, number 475-200, from ICI Americas, Inc., Wilmington, Del. The foregoing repositionable adhesives may be used to apply wall murals and wall decorations. Such wall murals and wall decorations often include licensed characters or logos printed on films for decorating the walls of juvenile rooms. One such product is known as the xe2x80x9cRoom Decorator Kitxe2x80x9d made by the 3M Company, Inc., St. Paul, Minn.
With the foregoing background, the present invention seeks to provide a border specifically for use with a swimming pool and which is inexpensive to produce and easy to install. There is a great variety of decorative and aesthetic patterns and designs that can be utilized with the swimming pool border of the present invention for improving the appearance of a swimming pool. Thus, the present invention can provide a simulated tile border, wall mural or mosaic, or a decorative shape that may be used to improve the appearance of a swimming pool or conceal an existing vinyl patch. The present invention can be placed over an existing pool liner to dramatically update or alter the look of the swimming pool without requiring the loss of water and expense of a new liner and installation solely to change or improve its cosmetic appearance. The swimming pool border of the present invention can provide an overall cosmetic improvement where an unattractive water line exists in a plain, solid color liner or provide a new pattern over an existing vinyl liner where a preprinted border has faded or discolored. The present invention may further include a thermometer for providing a point at which the swimming pool border could start and stop without an overlap in the pre-cut swimming pool border sections.
One presently preferred embodiment of the invention is a removable swimming pool border for use with a swimming pool having a steel sidewall. The swimming pool border includes a magnetic backing layer for removably attaching the swimming pool border to the sidewall of the swimming pool. The swimming pool border further includes a flexible facestock layer made of polymeric material. The facestock layer has designed indicia on one side thereof. The magnetic backing layer is secured to the facestock on the second side thereof opposite the design indicia side. The swimming pool border is removably attached to the sidewall of the swimming pool by magnetic attraction between the magnetic backing layer and the sidewall when the swimming pool border is in use. The swimming pool border is removably attached to the sidewall of the swimming pool along a top inner edge of the swimming pool such that the water level of the swimming pool lies along the height of the swimming pool border when the swimming pool border is in use.
The facestock may be laminated or adhesively secured to the magnetic backing layer. The swimming pool border may be provided as a continuous strip. Ends of the continuous strip may be connected together by a magnetic thermometer. The thermometer may include a pair of opposed flanges which extend outwardly along a longitudinal axis of the thermometer, with the flanges defining a recess extending from the flanges to an inner surface of the thermometer body for providing clearance for the ends of the continuous strip. A magnetic layer may be adhered to the inner surface of the thermometer for removably attaching the thermometer to the sidewall of the swimming pool by magnetic attraction between the magnetic layer and the sidewall when the thermometer is in use with the continuous strip.
The swimming pool border may be provided as a plurality of individual pool tiles configured for positioning in an end-to-end relationship along the top inner edge of the swimming pool. The magnetic backing layer may be made of finely ground magnetic particles embedded in a polyester film layer. The facestock may be made of acrylic or vinyl, or another similar flexible material.
A further presently preferred embodiment of the present invention is also a removable, adhesively-secured swimming pool border for use with a swimming pool having a sidewall and a pool liner. The swimming pool border includes a flexible facestock layer made of polymeric material. The facestock layer has design indicia on one side thereof. A pressure sensitive adhesive layer is located on the second side of the facestock opposite the design indicia side for removably attaching the swimming pool border to the pool liner of the swimming pool. A removable liner layer is attached to the surface of the pressure sensitive adhesive layer for protecting the pressure sensitive adhesive layer prior to use. The swimming pool border is adhesively attached to the pool liner by the pressure sensitive adhesive layer when the swimming pool border is in use. The swimming pool border is removably attached to the pool liner along a top inner edge of the swimming pool such that the water level of the swimming pool lies along the height of the swimming pool border when the swimming pool border is in use.
The pressure sensitive adhesive layer is preferably an acrylic emulsion plasticizer resistant pressure sensitive adhesive. The swimming pool border may be provided as a continuous strip, with ends thereof connected together by an adhesively secured thermometer. The thermometer may include a pair of opposed flanges which extend outwardly along a longitudinal axis of the thermometer, with the flanges defining a recess extending from the flanges to an inner surface of the thermometer body for providing clearance for the ends of the continuous strip. An adhesive layer may be attached to the inner surface of the thermometer and have an adhesive surface for removably attaching the thermometer to the ends of the continuous strip when the thermometer is in use with the continuous strip.
The present invention is also directed to a method of applying a swimming pool border to a pool liner of a swimming pool, and may include the steps of: providing the swimming pool border as described hereinabove; lowering the water level of the swimming pool to a level below the desired location of the swimming pool border; cleaning and drying the pool liner of the swimming pool at the desired location of the swimming pool border; removing the liner layer from the surface of the pressure sensitive adhesive layer from the swimming pool border; applying the swimming pool border to the pool liner of the swimming pool at the desired location of the swimming pool border, with the pressure sensitive adhesive layer in contact with the pool liner and removably securing the swimming pool border thereto; and returning the water level to a level that lies along the height of the swimming pool border. The method may further include the steps of providing the swimming pool border as a plurality of individual pool tiles; and applying the pool tiles to the pool liner in an end-to-end relationship along a top inner edge of the swimming pool.
Further details and advantages will become apparent from the following detailed description, in conjunction with the drawings wherein like parts are designated with like reference numerals.